Page 13 of Nitro

Still, I didn't want to wake him either, in case he was deeply asleep.

Besides, what would he think of me? I didn't want to come off as too needy this early in our relationship.

Could I even call what we had a relationship? Maybe I could ask Dylan more about this the next time we met up.

I took a deep breath, set my phone down, and decided I had to handle this sleeping problem on my own.

I changed out of my pajamas and into a shirt and jeans. Since it seemed cold outside, I put on a hoodie before exiting my apartment.

A pharmacy was just two blocks away from my place, and I vaguely remembered it was open 24 hours.

I checked the directions on my phone, just in case. The last thing I wanted to do was linger outside at this time of the night.

Who knew what or who was lurking out there? I let out a mirthless laugh after looking at the empty streets.

"For crying out loud, you live in Moon Burrow now. You're safe here," I whispered to myself.

Despite reassuring myself, I quickened my pace. I could do this, I constantly told myself. Easy-peasy.

Ten minutes later, I entered the pharmacy door.

The guy behind the counter was too busy watching a movie on his phone to notice me.

It didn't matter; I could find what I was looking for by myself.

I would be out of here in a matter of minutes and back in the safety of my apartment before I knew it.

No one needed to know I nearly had a full-scale panic attack earlier.

4

TOMMY/ NITRO

TOMMY

It took me a couple of minutes to find the section with the sleeping pills.

I selected a random brand and made my way to the cash register, feeling triumphant.

Then I heard loud voices. My inner magpie informed me that two shifter alphas had entered the store.

I spotted them and froze up completely. What made me think I could do this? Move to a new town by myself?

Maybe Marc was right. I wasn't ready to be independent.

"Good evening," one of the alphas said, noticing me.

His friend shot me a friendly smile. I didn’t like the attention one bit.

Not answering, I snatched the bottle of sleeping pills from the counter.

I had to get out of there immediately.

"Hey, you have to pay for that," the guy manning the cash register remarked.

I pulled out a fifty-dollar bill from my wallet, slapped it on the counter, and ran out of the store without another word.

Tears welled in my eyes as I raced back to my apartment. What just happened?